


Hat-Hazard

by Z1NC



Series: Holidays with the Marvel Bunch [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Cuddling, Fluff, Kisses, Knitting, M/M, Maybe A Little Plot, This is fluffy domestic trash with no plot, Winter, the briefest moment of hurt/comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:01:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,873
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28254318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Z1NC/pseuds/Z1NC
Summary: Steve knits Bucky a hat.That’s all there is to it . . .
Relationships: James “Bucky” Barnes/Steve Rogers
Series: Holidays with the Marvel Bunch [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2069772
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11





	Hat-Hazard

There’s three things that Steve loves the most about winter: hot cocoa, snow in Bucky’s hair, and convenient snowstorms that allow Bucky and Steve to stay inside all day. Maybe winter isn’t Bucky’s favorite time of year, but Steve tries his hardest to make it comfortable. Bucky doesn’t like the cold. He’s never explicitly told Steve this, but Steve isn’t blind enough to not notice how Bucky gets crabbier when it’s snowing. It’s cute, in a way. 

Steve has no clue how the two of them, both men that had grown up in Brooklyn, are so different. Nevertheless, he loves Bucky and that won’t change because he gets hissy about cold weather. If anything, it makes them better for each other. Steve is a furnace, always warm and practically melting in the summer. It’s a perfect reason for them to cuddle up to one another, not that they really need an excuse.

Anyway, Steve embraces their differences. It usually works out for them. 

Last year during the wintertime, Steve had come to realize that he enjoys knitting. Sure, he feared telling anyone in case they decided to remind him that knitting only played into the stereotype of him being an old man, but he hadn’t told anyone at that point in time. After the holidays had passed, Steve had sworn to himself that he’d make Bucky a hat the next winter. 

It was now the next winter, and Steve always sticks to what he promises.  _ I’m going to make Bucky a hat  _ is just as serious as  _ ‘til the end of the line.  _

The hat was nearly done, actually, and Steve was beyond impatient to hand it over to Bucky. Giving Bucky things always felt nice, because back when Steve was a skinny kid, Bucky always gave things to Steve. Steve was always taken care of. As much as he called it coddling back then, he did appreciate it. However, at the time, he didn’t know how he was supposed to repay Bucky. It was a sort of guilt that carried-on into a new millennium. Steve wanted to give everything he could to Bucky, even though Bucky insisted that Steve’s love was enough. 

Cheesy, right? 

So he got this nice light grey color, nothing too bright otherwise Bucky wouldn’t wear it. Steve’s goal was to keep Bucky’s ears warm. His hair was long but, as Bucky liked to say so often,  _ “not good for a thing.”  _ Steve thought Bucky was the best looking guy around with that hair, which was probably the only reason Bucky kept it long. Still, Steve knew that Bucky’s hair didn’t keep him very warm when there was snow blowing in his face. Or anytime. 

Steve was currently sitting in a rocking chair— a  _ recliner—  _ just like the elderly woman who’d try to feed him rations when he was a skinny kid. She liked knitting too, actually, but Steve had seen knitting back then as a waste of time when he could be working and making money. He was glad that life was good now. 

Knitting was soothing, it really was. The only downside Steve had discovered was that Stark made fun of him— endlessly— once the team had discovered Steve’s hobby. Well, everyone else commented on the knitting too, but in a decidedly nicer way. Next to Tony, Bucky was the worst about making fun of him. Sometimes the difference between making fun and bullying was a thin line. Bucky never got close to crossing that line, but Tony did. That was just Tony, wasn’t it?

Thankfully it was much easier to hide a knitting project from Bucky than it was from Tony, otherwise Steve’s whole surprise would’ve been ruined from the start.

Steve didn’t mind the taunting all that much, truth be told. He was much better at handling his temper now that he had Bucky to keep him strong. And, anyway, if Stark didn’t want a nicely knit article of clothing for when it got chilly, all he had to do was say so. Steve was going to get around to making hats, scarves, and mittens for the rest of the team once he had time. For now, though, his focus was on Bucky. He’d look so great in this hat, wouldn’t he? 

One last movement and the hat was done, maybe a bit frizzy in some places, but that was the appeal of homemade things. The satisfaction Steve felt when he could stare at the finished hat was incredible. Now he just had to hope that Bucky would like it. Why wouldn’t he? 

Steve waited until the morning to present the hat to Bucky. 

The night before had been amazing, as nights with Bucky usually are. Steve and Bucky had crawled into bed together and held each other close. Steve really didn’t know why Bucky didn’t like the cold. Seriously, it was the greatest reason to cuddle. 

Naturally, the morning came. Steve woke up to Bucky holding his hand, his thumb moving soothingly over Steve’s knuckles. Bucky’s eyes were open. He had been watching Steve sleep, waiting for him to open his eyes and greet Bucky. 

Steve couldn’t find any creepiness in the habit. Bucky was Bucky, and Steve loves Bucky. So much. 

Steve pets through Bucky’s hair, smiling. “Good morning.” 

“Good morning,” Bucky echoes, his voice hoarse. He clears his throat and leans in to kiss Steve’s cheek. Patting Steve gently, Bucky gets out of bed with an over the top groan and puts a shirt on. 

“I have a gift for you, Buck,” Steve says sleepily. 

“Really?” 

“Yeah,” Steve says, very dopey. He watches Bucky enter the bathroom to brush his teeth. He comes out soon enough with his hair put up on top of his head. The sight that Bucky makes is one of beauty. 

“How about you get ready first,” Bucky says playfully. 

“Uh-huh,” Steve agrees blankly, sliding out of bed. Bucky grins. Steve walks in the general direction of the bathroom, making an undignified noise when Bucky gropes him on his way. He uses the bathroom as quick as he can and brushes his teeth, staring at himself in the mirror. The hat he’d made for Bucky is hidden underneath their bed in a red box. There’s even a little bow on top, which was a last minute decision, but Steve thought it was a good one. 

He hadn’t written a note or left any sort of card with it. It was just a hat, though Steve hopes it’s good enough. Besides, anything Steve has to say to Bucky can be done verbally.

“Hey, Stevie?”

Steve had just exited the bathroom and reentered their room, frowning when he spotted Bucky holding a box similar to the one under their bed. This particular box is a different color— blue— and doesn’t have a bow on top. 

“Yeah, Buck? What’s this?” 

The look on Bucky’s face can only be described as nervously hopeful. 

“I have a gift for you, too.” 

Steve smiles fondly, shoulders dropping. Okay, everything's fine. Bucky just has a gift for him. Steve walks around to the other side of the bed and hugs Bucky tightly, kissing Bucky, hoping its full of emotion. 

“Wanna open ‘em at the same time?” He presses another kiss, this time to Bucky’s cheek, lingering there and enjoying the warmth on his lips. Steve can feel Bucky nodding his head against him, and Steve parts from his partner to get the gift from under the bed. He tries not to be too nervous when handing it over, and tries not to be too excited when he begins opening his own gift. They open their gifts at the same time, because they’re like that. 

Steve wants to see Bucky’s eyes light up when he sees Steve’s gift to him, he really does, but all train of thought is lost when he’s staring at a cool blue  _ hat.  _ Yes,  _ a hat.  _ There’s this mortifying feeling that washes over him, takes over him, and he can’t even touch the hat. It’s clearly handmade— as high-quality as it is, there’s always a difference. When Steve  _ does  _ work up the nerve to touch the hat, to move it, he finds that there’s  _ more.  _ A pair of mittens and a scarf, the same color as the hat, mock him. 

“I love this,” Bucky says, quite honestly, Steve notices as he glances up. Bucky is staring in awe at the hat Steve has knit him. Steve is so happy that Bucky likes it. He’s incredibly happy about his own gift, too. The set of winter items is beautiful, soft, and feels like it would keep Steve warm. Still, he feels somewhat betrayed that Bucky had out-gifted him. 

What? Steve had always been competitive. 

Bucky must notice Steve’s expression— of course he does, he reads Steve like a billboard— because what he says next is soft, apologetic. 

“Stevie . . . what’s wrong?” 

There’s nothing  _ wrong.  _ There really isn’t. 

“Nothing’s wrong, Buck,” Steve says just as soft. He rubs the soft hat with his fingers. It feels nice and comfortable. He puts on a smile. 

“Sweetheart,” Bucky starts, and Steve’s eyes jump up to him. “You made this for me, right?” 

Steve nods, feeling marginally confused. 

Bucky sighs. “Oh, Stevie. Do you see how perfect it is? That hat and scarf you’re holding?”

“Yeah?” Steve croaks, the smallest question. 

“I didn’t make that. Peter’s aunt did. She’s a real nice lady, loves to give cookies but will not take my crap, wouldn’t let me pay her. She said the blue would match your eyes perfectly . . . can you try something on?” 

It’s not relief that floods Steve. He hadn’t been worried in the first place, exactly. More saddened that his lovely surprise for his partner had been downplayed by the fantastic gift Bucky had given him. With great pleasure, Steve puts the hat on. His eyes are blue, but maybe not this exact blue. He doesn’t quite know, since he’s not staring at his eyes in the mirror all day. 

Bucky smiles that candy-sweet smile, wide and purely happy, and Steve melts. He’s candy and Bucky is the bright, shining sun. 

“She was right,” is all Bucky truly says, but Steve can see more words hiding behind his eyes. There’s more to it, peeking out through the way Bucky holds Steve’s jaw in his hand, like glass that may break. It’s his metal hand, and it’s cold against Steve’s skin. He’s sure he’s staring at Bucky with all of the adoration in the world. Bucky’s reflecting that look right back. It brings a wholesome feeling to the air around them. 

Bucky kisses Steve’s cheek. It’s more of a touch, the way Bucky rubs his lips against Steve’s cheek for just a moment. 

“Let me put on mine,” he says so quietly it’s almost silent. Bucky parts for just a moment from Steve to wear his cool grey hat, then falls wonderfully back into Steve’s arms. Bucky kisses his mouth this time, still a faint touch. 

Steve thinks he has some revisions to make on his list of favorite things in the wintertime. He definitely needs to add a lot more things that involve the way Bucky looks in the grey hat Steve had made for him. 

**Author's Note:**

> Rated T for the booty grab lol. I hope you enjoyed Steve and Bucky being nerds! Happy holidays! 
> 
> Feedback is always welcome!! :)


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